In a widely anticipated emergency meeting today in response to the swine flu threat, the World Health Organization announced that it is raising its pandemic alert level to Phase 4 from Phase 3-- the first time the alert level has been raised above 3 since the system was adopted in 2005.
The Phase 4 designation signifies that the new swine flu virus can cause sustained outbreaks and is adapting itself to spread among humans -- significant steps toward a pandemic. But the ranking does not...Full Story